This invention relates to a time-lapse video tape recorder (VTR) which intermittently records video signals on a magnetic tape to record and reproduce the video signals for a long time and suitably used as a monitor device, and more particularly to an audio signal recording/reproducing system for use in such a time-lapse VTR.
Widely used as a monitor device in financial institutions, etc. is the time-lapse VTR which adopts a rotary head helical scanning system and intermittently shifts a magnetic tape to record video signals as still images one piece per several seconds thereby recording/reproducing the video signals for a long time as long as 240 hours to 480 hours. (Such a time-lapse VTR has been disclosed in, e.g. JP-A No. 58-62985.)
However, the time-lapse VTR, which intermittently shifts a magnetic tape, can not record and reproduce audio signals on the magnetic tape. More specifically, the time-lapse VTR, which intermittently repeats the travel and stop of the magnetic tape, can not disadvantageously provide a function of audio recording.